Tag: Darrynton Evans

Grading the Colts’ 2023 free agent signings one year later

One year later, grading the Colts’ 2023 free agent signings.

With the benefit of hindsight, we now have a full season’s worth of information to judge the signings the Indianapolis Colts made during the 2023 offseason.

Some of them panned out better than expected. Others not so much.

Simply looking at the outside free agents brought onto the roster last offseason, we’re here to re-grade the signings the Colts made one year later. So we won’t be discussing the re-signings of players like Tyquan Lewis and E.J. Speed, both of which turned out exceptionally.

For reference, we’ll compare the initial grade we gave at the moment to how we currently feel about the signing.

Without further ado, here are our grades for the Colts’ free-agent class of 2023 one year later:

Bills sign 13 players to reserve/future contracts

Full list:

(Update 1/24, 6:30 p.m.): The Bills have also signed QB Shane Buechele to a reserve/future contract:

Previous coverage: 

The Buffalo Bills had inked 11 players to reserve/future contracts earlier this week. Then on Tuesday, two more were added to the bunch.

A reserve/future contract guarantees that a player cannot be signed by another team. The deal goes into effect once the new league year begins and will count towards the next season’s salary cap and 90-man roster for the offseason and training camp.

Of the 13, 11 were on the team’s practice squad during the 2023 season. Two of them, wide receiver KJ Hamler and safety Kendall Williamson, were not.

Here’s the full list of the 13 players the Bills have signed to reserve/future deals:

Dolphins elevate RB Darrynton Evans for Week 15

Miami elevates practice-squad RB for the second time this year.

The Miami Dolphins have some injuries at running back at the moment.

Salvon Ahmed and Chris Brooks remain on injured reserve. De’Von Achane has been dealing with an injury that’s made him questionable for this week. Even Raheem Mostert was on the injury report this week.

With that, the Dolphins have used one of their two elevations of running back Darrynton Evans.

Evans, 25, has been elevated one other time this season, so he has just one more for the rest of the year. In his one previous appearance for Miami, he rushed for 16 yards on two attempts. However, he did have a poor exchange with Tua Tagovailoa that resulted in a fumble.

Dolphins elevate RB Darrynton Evans for Week 12

Miami calls up a RB for Friday’s game.

The Miami Dolphins have had a number of injuries to the running back position this year.

Chris Brooks and Salvon Ahmed are currently on injured reserve, and De’Von Achane is questionable for Friday’s game with a knee injury.

That leaves just Raheem Mostert and Jeff Wilson Jr. as healthy backs on the 53-man roster.

To add some more depth for their battle against the New York Jets, Miami has elevated running back Darrynton Evans from their practice squad.

Evans spent time with the practice squad earlier in the year before being signed to the Chicago Bears active roster. He was re-signed to the practice squad this week.

In 17 career games, he’s rushed for 230 yards and a touchdown on 3.8 yards per carry with another 120 yards and a score on 12 receptions.

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Dolphins make a trio of roster moves on Tuesday

One goes to IR, one signs with the 53 and one signs with the practice squad.

The Miami Dolphins continue to get bit by the injury bug throughout their 2023 campaign.

On Tuesday, they placed running back Salvon Ahmed on injured reserve after he suffered a foot injury during Miami’s battle with the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday.

He’ll now have to miss at least four games before he returns, and the Dolphins are running out of designations.

That leaves just Raheem Mostert and Jeff Wilson Jr. as the lone healthy backs on the active roster, with De’Von Achane also dealing with a knee issue.

To replace Ahmed on the 53-man roster, the Dolphins signed wide receiver Robbie Chosen from their own practice squad. He was elevated for the second time this year last week and recorded two receptions for 39 yards.

That move left an open spot on the practice squad, which Miami has filled by signing running back Darrynton Evans. That name may seem familiar, and that would be because he was with the team earlier this year before he was signed to the Chicago Bears active roster.

If the Dolphins only have Mostert and Wilson going into Friday, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Evans get an elevation.

Bears run game has been dominant in past 4 games

Even down two of their top running backs, the Bears run game has thrived in the last month.

The Chicago Bears were the NFL’s top ranked rushing offense last season. And while they got off to a bit of a slow start this year, they’re once again a top five unit in the league.

The Bears are averaging 141.3 rushing yards per game, which ranks fifth in the NFL. But they’ve really hit their stride over the past four games, averaging  171 rushing yards per game. They’ve rushed for 171 yards (Broncos), 178 yards (Commanders), 162 yards (Vikings) and 173 yards (Raiders).

It’s made all the more impressive considering Chicago has been without its top two running backs in the past two games. Khalil Herbert landed on injured reserve with an ankle injury while rookie Roschon Johnson has been dealing with a concussion.

But veteran D’Onta Foreman has more than stepped up in their absence. After being inactive for four straight games, Foreman has been a reliable force on the ground with 31 rushes for 154 yards and two touchdowns. He’s averaged 5.0 yards per carry.

Foreman’s best game came in Week 7, where the team leaned on him and Darrynton Evans with undrafted rookie Tyson Bagent making his first NFL start. Foreman accounted for 120 total yards (89 rushing, 31 receiving) and three total touchdowns, while averaging 5.6 yards per carry.

With Johnson slated to return this week against the Raiders — and Herbert expected to return in a few weeks — things could get interesting in the running back room. There are plenty of capable backs — now it’s about spreading the wealth.

5 keys to a Bears victory over the Vikings in Week 6

The Bears take on the Vikings looking for their second straight win. Here are five keys to a Chicago victory.

The Chicago Bears are gearing up to host the rival Minnesota Vikings in Week 6, and it’s a tale of two 1-4 teams who have drastically different outlooks on their seasons.

Chicago is coming off a statement win against the Washington Commanders on Thursday Night Football, which saw quarterback Justin Fields throw four touchdown passes, and the team is nearly at full strength as key players return from injury.

Minnesota, on the other hand, is falling well short of expectations following a 13-4 2022 campaign. And their most recent loss to the Chiefs was only made things worse when perennial All-Pro receiver Justin Jefferson was placed on injured reserve this week. The Vikings are wounded, and they’re looking at the Bears as a real Viking would look at his prey after starving for days.

Despte the loss of Jefferson, the purple and gold will not give up the win easily. Chicago needs to succeed in five key categories in order to take down their divisional foe from the snow-capped north of Minnesota.

Let’s break down the five keys to a Bears victory against the Vikings in Week 6.

Bears announce several roster moves, including Kyler Gordon designated to return from IR

The Bears designated CB Kyler Gordon and C Doug Kramer to return from IR and officially signed RB Darrynton Evans to the active roster.

The long weekend for the Chicago Bears has come and gone, and now it’s back to business as usual, which includes a flurry of roster moves as they prepare for a Week 6 matchup against the Minnesota Vikings. On Monday, the Bears announced they signed running back Darrynton Evans to the active roster as well as quarterback Nathan Peterman to the practice squad. The Bears are also welcoming back a few players from injury, as they designated cornerback Kyler Gordon and center Doug Kramer to return from injured reserve.

Evans spent the 2022 season with the Bears, primarily on their practice squad. He played in six games, rushing 14 times for 64 yards. He bounced around the league during the 2023 offseason, most notably with the Buffalo Bills, where he made a statement against the Bears in the final preseason game with nine carries for 65 yards, including a 35-yard touchdown. Evans was most recently on the Miami Dolphins practice squad before coming to the Bears.

The signing of Evans is in response to the ankle injury running back Khalil Herbert suffered during last Thursday’s 40-20 win against the Washington Commanders. Herbert is expected to miss multiple weeks with the injury.

While the Bears are preparing to be without Herbert for the next few weeks, they could be getting a key player back in the fold. Gordon is set to return to practice this week after spending the last four weeks on injured reserve. He suffered a broken hand in the team’s Week 1 loss to the Green Bay Packers. Gordon had one tackle and one pass defensed before exiting the game.

Kramer, meanwhile, is also returning to practice after missing the first five weeks of the season. The second-year center was injured in the team’s final preseason game and has yet to play in a regular-season game. Both players will need to be activated within 21 days, or they will revert back to injured reserve.

Bears sign RB off Dolphins practice squad

Miami loses a depth RB.

The Miami Dolphins and Chicago Bears have been involved in a number of transactions with each other including trades for Chase Claypool and Dan Feeney this year.

Now, on Sunday, the Bears are signing a player off of Miami’s practice squad – running back Darrynton Evans.

Evans signed with the Dolphins after roster cuts, but he hasn’t appeared in a game yet this season.

Miami’s running back group is now made up of Raheem Mostert, De’Von Achane, Salvon Ahmed, Chris Brooks and Jeff Wilson Jr. (injured reserve).

The Dolphins also now have an open practice squad spot.

Bills’ Darrynton Evans took commercial flight to play vs. Bears

#Bills running back Darrynton Evans, who had nine carries for 65 yards and a touchdown on Saturday, almost had to drive to the game (via @SharifKeaton):

Buffalo Bills running back Darrynton Evans had quite a Saturday.

Not only did he have nine carries for 65 yards and one touchdown, but he also had to do some running before the Bills’ 24-21 preseason finale win over the Chicago Bears.

In Evans’ social media post on X, due to flight issues, he almost had to drive himself to Chicago if he wanted to make the game on time to be able to play.

It isn’t known why Evans was not on Buffalo’s team flight, but the important thing is that he made it to the game in time to pull off some spectacular plays. Evidently it must have been some sort of accident if he was allowed to suit up.

In the game, Evans had a 35-yard run that culminated in a touchdown and along the way, he broke so many tackles that it was hard to count. It was good to see Evans play as well as he did given that he’s competing for the backup RB spot behind presumed starter James Cook.

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